Vietnam Government Critic Arrested

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

June 14, 2013

The police in Vietnam have arrested one of the country’s best known bloggers for posting criticism of the government, intensifying a crackdown against Internet-fuelled dissent in the one-party, authoritarian state. The arrest of the blogger, Pham Viet Dao, 61, indicates the level of concern in the Communist Party over the threat posed by Internet activism. Up until a few years ago, the party had a monopoly on information in the country. Now, scores of blogs and Facebook accounts report gleefully on its failings and internal feuding. So far this year, 38 bloggers or activists have been arrested, about the same as in the whole of 2012. Mr. Dao was arrested Thursday and charged with “abusing democratic freedoms,” the Ministry of Public Security said on its Web site.